The best small smart TVs

Most of the attention around smart TVs tends to revolve around bigger ones, especially those over 50 inches. They’re the sets we put in our living rooms for maximum cinematic immersion. Sometimes, though, a smaller TV is called for — say for a bedroom, kitchen, office, or home gym.

The best small smart TVs

We’re limiting our selection to options under 43 inches. On the surface that might seem like an arbitrary cutoff, but it’s relatively easy to find that size for most models  — it’s below that threshold that you might need help. Also, even a 43-inch TV can be too big to mount on something like a desk or power rack, which defeats the flexibility we’re aiming for.

LG C2 OLED

This one barely slips under the wire at 42 inches, but if you can afford it, it’s probably the best option on this list. LG is known for its picture quality, and the C2 is not only a 4K OLED model but equipped with Dolby Vision IQ HDR and four HDMI 2.1 ports. It’s also well-suited to gaming, thanks to support for variable refresh rates (VRR) and technologies like NVIDIA G-Sync and AMD FreeSync Premium. It won’t break the bank, despite using OLED — it’s currently less than $900.

Vizio D-Series

Vizio has scaled the D-Series down to 24-inch and 32-inch versions, but at those sizes, it specs are impressive. It delivers 1080p resolution in a format where most TVs are capped at 720p, and it’s even relatively gaming-friendly, offering VRR, AMD FreeSync, and some limited HDR support. If there are meaningful downsides, they’re just that you’re stuck with two HDMI 1.4 ports, one of which you’ll want to connect an add-on media streamer to. Vizio’s native interface is functional, but not that great.

Samsung The Frame

As its name and look suggest The Frame is intended to hang like a picture frame, and when it’s turned off, it even switches to a motion-triggered Art Mode. More importantly it’s a 4K QLED TV with HDR, using a matte display to minimize reflections. The only sub-43 size option is 32 inches — and there’s no Dolby Vision support — but it’s hard to deny the product’s aesthetic appeal.

TCL 3-Series Roku TV

We’d actually suggest going with the Vizio D-Series over this one, since the 3-Series is limited to 720p resolution without technologies like VRR, but there are some advantages here. For one it has Roku OS, which is a superior interface to Vizio’s. There are also three HDMI 2.0 ports, which lets you connect more devices, and this model delivers 32 inches for about the same price as Vizio’s 24.

Sony A90K OLED

For most small TV buyers, the A90K will be complete overkill when the LG C2 is also available. It’s about $400 more for the same 42-inch size, and both sets are 4K OLED models with features like Dolby Vision, Dolby Atmos, and VRR. In one sense it’s a step back, since only two of its four HDMI ports offer HDMI 2.1. But you do get Google TV, and features aimed at PlayStation 5 owners, namely Auto HDR Tone Mapping and Auto Genre Picture Switch.

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